YouTube is the land of never-ending possibilities, and the saying is true for both adults and kids. Since the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) came into effect in January 2020, YouTube has become a much safer place for kids to explore and create content.
This article will explain how you can become a YouTuber as a kid and make content on the platform. So without further ado, let’s dive right in.
This step to how to be a YouTuber for beginners is crucial. If you want to be a YouTuber — whether as a kid or as an adult — you need to have a solid plan in mind. So before you do anything else - think about the following things:
Kids under 13 can’t sign up for YouTube using a Gmail account, so if you’re under 13, you’re going to have to ask your parents for permission. This means that you will also have to use your parents' Gmail account, as the terms and conditions of Gmail state that you need to be 13 years old to manage your own account. Even if you’re older than 13 years old, we strongly recommend asking your parents for permission and getting them on board.
Having your parents on board will make everything about YouTubing a lot easier to handle. They can monitor your comments section, your content and give you valuable advice while you’re filming or editing your videos.
Being a kid means you probably don’t have the money to splurge on expensive cameras, lights, and microphones. However, you’re in luck! If you are wondering how to start a kid YouTube channel and feel overwhelmed about the equipment, then you can actually relax. A lot of kids film their content on their smartphones or their parents’ smartphones or cameras. As for lighting, all you need is a bit of sunlight and you’re good to go!
The equipment you will be using for your video will also depend on the type of content you are filming, but most of the time, it will be pretty basic. A decent smartphone or a camera does the job half the time. You could also upgrade the filming experience by having a microphone. But again, you could start really simple and see how things go from there.
While starting out, it might be confusing to decide on the equipment to use, especially if you actually want to ask your parents to invest in some professional equipment. To simplify things, let's break down everything you might need while setting things up for your channel.
Videos need to be filmed, so you need a camera. But this doesn't really have to be so expensive. Most of the modern-day phones have a decent camera, so you can use that for shooting videos. However, if you can convince your parents to invest in a professional camera, then here are some that could buy.
Most phone cameras have decent microphones, but if you are really looking for superior audio quality in your videos, then here are some microphones that you could invest in.
Some other equipment might just add to your YouTube video making experience. Consider asking your parents to invest in the few things below. However, do not think that you could totally become a kid YouTuber without these advanced equipment. Like we said earlier: all you might need is a smartphone.
Filming can be scary. It’s not easy to stand in front of a camera, be natural, and say everything you want to say without stuttering or forgetting your lines. That’s why you should always practice and rehearse before you start filming your content. You can “perform” your content to your family or just play around in front of the mirror — anything works as long as you get good practice for it. Don’t forget — practice makes perfect! One of the reasons why YouTubers fail is because they don't practice.
If you have a script, things get much more comfortable — you will know what to say when, and you will always have something to refer to if you forget what you are talking about. However, some videos can be quite spontaneous. For that, you must be aware of the subject you are talking about and are even passionate about it. Once you have that figured out, shooting a good video becomes a walk in the park. Besides, you will only get better with time and feel more confident about the entire process.
Check out some of the work that other kid YouTubers are doing. That will help you figure out many things and help you have a better outlook on how they go about structuring their videos before they start filming.
Most PCs come with free editing software on them these days, so you don’t have to ask your parents to buy you fancy software or download one without their permission. These video editors are also straightforward to use and learn, and you’ll get the hang of it in no time! Just play around with the different options and learn to edit as you go.
Some of the most popular video editing software are Filmora, OpenShot, iMovie and Movie Maker.
Suppose you want to work on a different video editor. In that case, there are several free video editors out there that are intuitive, which means you won't have to spend a lot of time figuring them out. You can ask your parents to download them for you and set it up. If you are still confused, you might want to check out the numerous tutorial videos on YouTube. There is a video out there for most of your editing queries, so that's a good way to go about it.
Developing some video ideas and figuring out the equipment and the editing part is a great beginning to your journey of becoming a kid YouTuber. That done, you will be all set to start publishing videos on YouTube as a kid.
Now comes the next part: marketing your YouTube channel so that it starts growing and gaining more subscribers, which might help you become famous on YouTube.
Here are a couple of practical ways to grow your YouTube channel as a kid:
If you are wondering how to become famous on YouTube as a kid, then this is an important step. It is one of the best ways to promote your new YouTube channel as a kid. The first thing you would want to do after uploading some videos is reaching out to your friends and family. You can tell them about this cool new YouTube channel that you have started and how it will be great if they can subscribe to it.
Most of the time, your friends and family members won't mind subscribing to your YouTube channel. Most family and friends groups are well connected on social media, which means that the word of your new YouTube channel will quickly go around.
You can also directly ask them to share the channel with their network. That done, your friends and family will always stay updated with the videos you post online and get to know more about your talent and creativity.
You won't be the only awesome kid YouTuber who would be making super cool and engaging content on YouTube. There will be other talented kids like you who will be uploading videos, and this opens doorways to promoting your channel.
A great way to grow your YouTube channel is to connect with these YouTubers and check out their kids channels. You can give each other a shout out and cross-promote your channel. By participating in the video-making community and actively interacting with each other, and by commenting and sharing videos, you can build great connections that will help spread the word of your channel.
Online community and forums are a great space to talk about your channel. You can get on platforms such as Facebook and Reddit with the help of your parents and talk about your channel and the value it brings to the discussion. That way, you can connect with like-minded people and grow your channel's subscriber base.
The Internet can be a strange place, and if you are out there making YouTube videos as a kid, then chances are that lots of people might reach out to you for some sort of scam. There will be others who will want to troll you. Some of your video viewers could leave a nasty, hateful or discouraging comment on your video, and while sometimes this might seem discouraging, it is best to ignore such opinions and only focus on healthy feedback and constructive criticism that will help you become a better YouTuber. Additionally, there's always the option to disable comments on your videos.
As your videos start attracting more viewers, you might suddenly feel overwhelmed, and a lot of people might start contacting you for different purposes. While exchanging messages, information and feedback is one of the parts of vlogging, safety is something that you cannot ignore, at any cost. With so many potential scammers and trolls out there, it will help if you establish some ground rules.
Here are a couple of steps that you can take as a kid YouTuber to stay safe while making YouTube videos.
Sometimes, the process of making YouTube videos and being a kid YouTuber can be overwhelming, and this is where you would need help from your parents. Having your parents at your back can help you deal with many complications that you might face as a kid YouTuber.
Your parents can help you filter out all the toxicity from the platform. They may even help you moderate the comment section so that you do not have to come across toxicity, bullying, and trolling. If someone's watching your video on YouTube Kids — YouTube's safe and moderated app for kids — then you can be assured that your content will be clean and toxicity free.
Besides, you can also get some valuable inputs from your parents. Telling them about your channel's plans can help you get some feedback on the process, which will help you make the videos even better.
If you find someone harassing you on the internet or on YouTube, make sure you tell your parents immediately about it. They will take care of things for you, either by blocking the harasser's account or reporting it.
The internet is better when there is kindness, understanding, and respect among people, artists, YouTubers, or anyone for that matter. There is no room for trolling and hatred.
As your kid YouTube channel starts growing, there will be many people who will be watching it. Make sure you draw a healthy boundary around the stuff you talk about on your channel by not sharing any private information.
Do not share things like your phone number, your address, or your parents' bank details with anyone. There will also be people who will try to offer you free downloads and goodies in exchange for different things, so make sure such requests go through your parents.
By not giving away your personal information and other sensitive data, you can ensure that you have a safe and trouble-free experience while making videos on YouTube as a kid.
Okay, now you know the basics of starting your journey as a kid YouTuber, and it's time to come up with a channel idea. A lot of searches around successful YouTube channel as a kid 2020 showed us that kid YouTubers are playing around with different ideas and gaining success. Let's look at some of the YouTube channel ideas for kids that can help you get started.
Games are so popular among kids and have got a huge following base. If you love gaming, and if you think you can balance it with your other daily activities, then ask your parents if they will allow you to set up a gaming channel. If they agree, then go ahead and pick out those games you want to talk about.
Arts and crafts are really popular with a lot of people. If you have talent with craft, then go ahead and consider opening a craft channel. Your parents might just like this idea and even help you set things up and might even get you some nice goodies.
Indoor games are popular with people of all age groups. If you are a kid who loves board games and other indoor activities, then feel free to think about starting a channel on the same. You might even share your love for indoor games with the rest of the world and help people spend more time together.
Want to be a celebrity masterchef? Start your own cooking channel on YouTube and share your delicacies with the world. Who doesn't like a little chef in the kitchen?
Do you like keeping your surroundings clean? Do you like segregating garbage, or planting trees? Make a channel where you talk about eco-friendly content and spread the good world to help save the environment.
Science projects are fun. There is so much to learn with them. If you are a young scientist who wants to show their talent to the world, then consider starting a science-based YouTube channel where you share your knowledge and experience with the world.
Pets are so cuddly and nice to hang out with. Do you have a favorite pet you think everyone will love? Start a channel on pets and show everyone how to take care of them and how to take them out for walks. Maybe share some interesting facts about them that everyone might love.
Let's see some steps, let's hear some chords! If you love singing and dancing, then you should definitely share it with the world. Open a YouTube channel where you dance to your favorite tune or sing a nice song — this will really help spread joy in the world.
Do you love a show to a point where you are obsessed with it? Try starting a fan theory channel where you spread and talk about these wild ideas about a show and connect with other like-minded kids who enjoy your favorite TV show.
If you are under 18, one way to make money off YouTube is by linking your channel to your parents' AdSense account. Alternatively, you could participate in sponsored vlogging and affiliate marketing with the help of your parents — you will need their bank information to get paid and approved on affiliate platforms.
The best way around this is to encourage and develop the skill that they want to share with the world. You can also help them set up the channel and buy some good equipment that could help them get started.
Some of the richest kid YouTubers are Everleigh Rose Soutas, Ryan Kaji, Mila and Emma Stauffer, and Everleigh Rose Soutas, among others. They reportedly make millions of dollars from their YouTube channels.
The minimum age to run a YouTube channel and own a Gmail account is 13. If you are younger, you could ask your parents to help you set up a YouTube account.
It might seem challenging when you start your journey as a kid YouTuber, but things might not actually be as hard as they seem. You just need to be patient and go through the learning curve. With a little help from your parents and friends, you can actually start making great videos that are funny, creative, and informative.
Once you have some good content out there, people will start picking it, and maybe some of your videos will even go viral. And that's when things will start getting awesome! You will build a lot of connections, and people will start enjoying and sharing your videos.
The process of making YouTube videos as a kid will only get better as you spend more time with the process and get better with filming, editing, and marketing. Once you start doing well, you could even convince your parents to buy you new equipment!
Happy vlogging!